MIT experts have developed Supernumerary Robotic Limbs that strap on like a backpack to augment the number of limbs a person has.

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By RT StaffJune 3, 2014

How many times have you said, “Man, I could really use an extra pair of hands.”

Now you’re in luck.

Researchers at the d’Arbeloff Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have created lightweight, wearable robotic arms. The Supernumerary Robotic Limbs (SRLs) aren’t designed to replace biological limbs, but they are designed to augment the number of limbs a person has.

Four arms have to be better than two, right? Think Doc Ock. The Supernumerary Robotic Limbs (SRLs) slip on like a backpack and move over your shoulders or from your hips.

As an example, the robotic arms could open a door while the wearer carries shopping bags with his/her real arms. However, MIT says in the future the SRLs could eventually learn routines.

The SRLs weigh 10 pounds and, according to Gizmodo, “learn the way your body moves, and then make predictions on how you’d want them to help.”

MIT says the robotics arms are designed to streamline tasks, give humans an extra pair of hands and become an extension of their own body.